The present invention relates to food slicers.
Commercial and residential food preparers may prepare a meal for business patrons, loved ones, and the like. To this end, chefs must prepare the individual ingredients such that the prepared meal is aesthetically pleasing to the patron. For example, carrots and cucumbers may have to be cut into small bite size pieces such that they are easily eaten and more appetizing. In another example, the individual ingredient may have to be sliced into varying thicknesses. One method of slicing food is to manually cut the food product (e.g., tomato, cucumber, carrot, etc.) with a chef knife and a cutting board. However, slicing food products with a chef knife requires a great deal of skill and practice. Otherwise, the sliced food product may be uneven and aesthetically unpleasing. Unfortunately, lay people are not as skillful with their chef knife to produce aesthetically pleasing sliced food products. Moreover, slicing food products with a chef knife is very time consuming.
Prior art food slicers have been manufactured to assist the lay person in quickly and efficiently slicing food products. These prior art food slicers may have a working surface upon which the food product may be cyclically slid upon to slice the food product. In particular, the working surface at a central portion thereof may have a blade with its knife edge directed toward a proximal end of the slicer. When the food product is traversed downward into the blade's edge, the food product is sliced and the sliced food product is urged under the slicer. The user may cyclically slide the food product up and down the working surface to produce aesthetically pleasing sliced food product.
Prior art food slicers may also have the ability to adjust the thickness of the sliced food product. For example, the slicer may be sold with a plurality of blades. Each of the blades when attached to the slicer may slice the food product at a different thickness. The user may cut different thicknesses of the food product by changing out the blade for a different blade to slice the food product at a particular thickness.
More particularly, the thickness of the sliced food is dependent upon a gap distance between the blade's knife edge and a trailing edge of an upper portion of the working surface. Each of the plurality of blades each have a knife edge that is further away or closer to the upper portion trailing edge when the blade is engaged to the slicer enabling the user to cut different thicknesses of food products. The working surface may be defined by the upper portion and a lower portion. The blade may be attached to the lower portion with the blade's knife edge directed toward a proximal end of the slicer. In this regard, as the food product is slid downward from the upper portion to the lower portion and downward pressure is applied to the food product as the food product passes over the blade's knife edge, the food product is sliced and the sliced food product is urged under the slicer (i.e., under the blade). Changing the blade for a different blade changes the gap distance between the blade's knife edge and the trailing edge of the upper portion of the working surface thereby changing the thickness of the sliced food product.
Unfortunately, the user's fingers are exposed to the sharp knife edge of the blade as the blade is being exchanged for another blade. Additionally, the time to change out the blades may be excessive because the blade already attached to the slicer must be removed, then the selected blade attached to the slicer. Moreover, since the plurality of blades are not always attached to the slicer, the blades may be lost or misplaced.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved food slicer.